Bitter and Blue
by rumpleswagskin
Summary: Another one that's been saved on my computer for ages! SONGFIC based on MW's Bitter and Blue. Tony has been distracted and itching to leave work all day, and Ziva wants to know what's up. Maybe she should follow him... FLUFF! Please review!


Bitter and Blue- 1462 words

Tony had been acting strange for the whole day.

It was almost like he _didn't want to work._

Not that that was weird for Tony, as normally he spent his hours lounging back on his desk chair and shooting spitballs at McGee. But this time…it was different. It was almost like he was late for something. He was trying to use any excuse he could think of to get out of the office. Ziva's mind worked in overdrive.

_At midday_

_The sun beat down on their backs as Ziva clicked the camera around the crime scene._

_ "DiNozzo," barked Gibbs, "Go to your house and get some latex gloves. We've run out," he said. Tony's face lit up._

_ "Then can I __**stay**__ home?" he asked, wide-eyed in hope. The whole team turned and stared at him incredulously. His grin retracted._

_ "I, uh…they're showing Eastenders at one. Didn't wanna miss it. I'll just…go get the gloves now."_

Ziva had noticed that he was behaving a little oddly then, as no one in their right mind would ever ask Gibbs to go home in the middle of a case.

_0500_

_Tony was working furiously on his paperwork. Ziva watched the bead of sweat that trickled down the side of his face, creased in concentration._

_ "Wow," said McGee, "Do you reckon they finally gave him his Ritalin?" Ziva chuckled, but Tony didn't even budge, not responding to the joke. That was weird in itself. Suddenly, he slammed his hands down on the desk in relief._

_ "Yes!" he exclaimed. "Boss, paperwork finished, can I go now?" he asked. Gibbs looked at him._

_ "Eager, DiNozzo?"_

_Tony shrugged._

_ "Just wanna get home." Gibbs watched him for a moment, but nodded his head towards the elevator. Tony practically danced through the doors._

That was when Ziva had decided to follow him.

It was a stupid idea, she knew, but some part of her ached to find out what her partner was so keen on getting to. She hoped against all hope that it wasn't another mystery woman.

"Gibbs, I have finished as well. I will see you tomorrow," she said. Gibbs nodded in response. Ziva quickly caught the next elevator down and into the building's foyer. Looking around quickly, she spotted Tony's cloaked figure exiting the automatic glass doors, and turning left. She followed.

Ziva drew her hood up over her head, both because the night was cold, and because it offered her some form of identity protection. Keeping her head more or less down to the pavement, Ziva tucked her dark curls inside her hoodie, her breath leaving wisps of fog in the air.

Tony had retreated to his car. Ziva quickly noted that getting into it would involve him turning around. Instantly, she snapped her body behind a thick telegraph pole, her heart pounding, hoping he hadn't spotted her. She heard his car door open and close, and peeked round the corner.

He was not in his car.

Instead, he had continued walking, this time clutching a large, black, oddly shapen bag. The night made it impossible to see exactly what it was. So she continued following, her hands shoved in her pockets.

At last Tony seemed to have stopped. He had paused in front of a building before walking inside. Ziva noted the neon sign. It said "_The Blue Room_." Ziva knew of this place. It was a club, mainly for jazz but open for other styles too. Pulling her hood down further over her eyes, she entered the place.

The lights were dim and orange tinted, and the stench of smoke hung in the air. Ziva could even _see _the cloud of it around her, and everyone else. A large man stood at an archway with relief etched on his face.

"Tony! _Finally,_ we thought we was gonna have to replace ya!" he exclaimed, clapping Tony on the back. He grinned.

"Ah, don't sweat it Marty. Did ya miss me?" he joked.

"Naww, never!" Marty beamed, showing yellowed teeth. "Come on, you're up next!" he beckoned. Tony took a deep breath and continued into the quiet club. It was lined with lounges and tables around corners, and a bar stretched across the back. The place was shabby, but…cozy.

Marty allowed Ziva inside and she took a seat at one of the very back tables. He had said "You're up next." Up next for _what_, exactly?

Her question was soon answered.

The near-collapsing stage at the front had a sudden spotlight thrown at it, and Marty ambled onto the stage. He tapped the microphone.

"Hey everyone. Shut up for a second. Well he's here, everybody's favourite regular, Tony DiNozzo!" he said, welcoming Tony onto the stage. Scattered applause rang through the audience. Tony stepped into the spotlight clutching…a guitar?

_He never told me he could play guitar! This is so strange…_ Ziva thought.

"Um, hey guys," said Tony, scratching the back of his head as the microphone made feedback sounds. The whole room was intensely focused on him. You could tell that he was pretty famous around the place.

"Well, this is a new song I wrote. It's about…a friend of mine. They went missi— away. For a long time. I didn't think I'd ever see them again. But we got her back, and that's all that matters."

"_Her_?" called someone in the audience. Tony ignored them.

This all felt surreal to Ziva. Tony seemed to be talking…about _her_. Tony had written a song about her? It was too good to be true.

"It's just about, how I kinda felt during the time she wasn't there. I feel like, I can sorta tell you guys about it." An encouraging cheer rose from the audience, and Tony smiled. He sat down on a stool in the centre of the stage and heaved his guitar to his lap. And then, he began to play.

Ziva's mouth nearly fell open when she heard his voice.

It was low, guttural, sexy…and incredibly, _incredibly_ good. She didn't know he could sing! She took note of a few of the verses.

"_Oh the beholder_

_So steadfast and true_

_Observing the wreckage_

_From his point of view_

_In revolt of long lost hope_

_Oh, yeah," _he sung.

Not only were the lyrics creative and poetic…they were heartfelt.

"_I'm thoughtful and_

_Gloomy and_

_Bitter and blue," _were the words of the chorus. Ziva's heart throbbed painfully in her chest as she smiled. It was amazing to hear what really went through his mind while she was gone.

"_So give me an answer_

_A place and a time_

_A way to advance_

_A cosmic sign_

_And I'll show you_

_My point of view_

_Oh, yeah_

_Yeah, I'll show you."_

So he was looking for answers. He was confused, looking for a way to move forward.

"_I haven't been happy_

_In such a long time_

_Cloudy and grey skies_

_Instead of sunshine_

_I guess that's how_

_I'm looking now_

_So pale_

_Like I'm in disguise," _he crooned softly. Tears came to her eyes. If only he knew she was here…

Tony finished the song and the audience clapped as he left the stage.

"Open mic now," said Marty.

As Tony went to leave, a figure caught his eye, shaking her hair out of her hood. He snapped to attention. Only one woman had hair like that.

_"Ziva?_!" he questioned. She approached him. Tony gulped. She had heard his song. Honestly…he didn't know how she would react.

"Ziva, what are you doing here?" he asked.

"I'm observing you, Tony," she replied, her brown eyes softly questioning. He was silent, unsure of what to say.

"I…I should probably go," he said, making an excuse to get away from those eyes he wished he could just fall into. As he turned to leave, her small hand locked onto his wrist. He turned painfully and faced her again.

"That was beautiful, Tony," she said, her face full of honesty. He smiled wryly.

"Glad you liked it," he replied.

"I did not realize you…felt, so strongly about me," said Ziva, still honest. He chuckled lightly.

"I already told you I couldn't live without you," Tony told her. Ziva bit her lip as her face flushed.

"And I already kissed you," she said, leaning in to press her lips to his cheek like she had in the men's bathroom. At the last minute, he turned his head and caught her lips with his own, soft, and light. When his eyes opened, she was smiling. They said nothing for a moment, his chin resting on the top of her head.

"I happen to know that you sing too, Zee-vah," Tony smiled. "It's open mic night, you should give it a go." Ziva smirked and looked up at him.

"Do you know a song called…"_Temptation?"_

**[Hope you liked it, just a couple of notes. Firstly, I know that is nothing of what the song is actually about, but I manipulated it a bit. And plus, it seems to be about a wrecked relationship…and theirs sort of was, wasn't it? Secondly, this idea is based on something that Michael Weatherly himself came up with, answering this question.**

"**Will Michael Weatherly's song 'Bitter & Blue' be used in Season 8 of 'NCIS'? It'd be nice to actually have Michael singing with the guitar. – Kylie"**

**He replied: "I can't say if it will ever happen or never happen, but I'm not against it, in the right scenario." He also said his proposed set up was 'Ziva following Tony to a smoky little jazz club where he's playing his heartfelt music, expressing himself.' SQUEE! I guess I just sorta Tiva-fied it a little :) Info can be found here: .com/blogs/2010/tv-news/the-big-tease-scoop-on-greys-ncis-criminal-minds-bones-and-more/**


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